Reference no: EM133457724

Assignment: ART TALK

QUESTION ONE
This assignment is designed to give you practice in using the vocabulary of the Elements Principles. At another point in this course you will be asked to write a critique. This assignment helps prepare you for that task.

1. Describe the subject matter you are able to see in this painting.

2. List the colors used in the composition.

3. Which color(s) dominate?

4. Describe the brushstrokes?

5. Give two examples of how the repetition of colors is used to "unify" the composition.

6. List three different words that describe the "feeling" or "mood" of this painting.

QUESTION TWO

1. In the space below draw a basic diagram of this work that features the primary lines and shapes you think are important to this composition. Do not attempt to copy the painting - simple lines and shapes are all you want.

2. Describe the kinds of lines you found were important in drawing this work.

3. Discuss space in this work. For example, does the space seem shallow or deep? Do forms seem distributed into a depth of field (foreground, midground, or background)? Or, do the forms seem up close and near the picture plane?

4. Although difficult to see in a reproduction, do the textures seem to be smooth or rough? Discuss.

5. If you were to divide this work into several "main" parts, how many would there be? Describe the parts and the Elements that made them stand out to you.

6. Many people Van Gogh's works to be very "intense" and, like Pollock's works, "energetic". Describe the intensity and energy in this painting and suggest what Elements and Principles cause it to feel that way.

QUESTION THREE

1. Describe the shapes you see in this composition. How many are organic and how many are geometric.

2. What do you notice about the edges of shapes?

3. Are the forms in this work modeled and volumetric OR flat and two-dimensional? Explain your choice.

4. Describe the Space in this work: is it flat or deep? Have indicators of space been used?

5. Discuss the Rhythm and Repetition you see in this work.

6. The subject matter of three musicians is obvious in this work. Can you think of ways in which the Elements and Principles used this work also convey the idea and feel of music? Explain.

QUESTION FOUR

The above works share a common theme and subject matter - only the cast of characters are changed. In the illustrations of the Boston Massacre British soldiers kill several Colonialists. The Goya painting pictures the execution of citizens by Napoleon's soldiers in Spain. Obviously the top two prints are in black and white while Goya's uses rich colors. But there are many other compositional techniques Goya uses to create a more powerful statement. In the following space discuss which Elements and Principles were used by Goya to make a more emotionally charged, powerful work than the other two illustrations.

Note: Do not base your comparison on "subject matter". This is a comparison of compositional differences. Develop your comparison as thoroughly as possible.